1. Technical Field
This invention relates generally to a weather alert system and, in particular, this invention relates to a weather alert system which may be mounted to a wall or ceiling in a manner similar to that of a standard smoke detector and which will remotely activate a nearby television or other visual information source in response to an emergency broadcast signal for proving information concerning the emergency to the user.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Modern advances in meteorology and weather detection devices, such as Doppler radar and high resolution weather satellites, have drastically increased the accuracy and timeliness with which severe storms and tornadoes may be predicted or detected. Early issuance of severe weather and tornado warnings by the National Weather Service (NWS) and National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has saved many lives by allowing those living in affected areas to seek shelter before arrival of the severe weather conditions. However, for these warnings to be effective, they must be received and communicated to their intended recipients.
Warning of severe weather is usually provided through the NOAA Weather Radio system. NOAA Weather Radio is a 24-hour, nationwide network of radio stations broadcasting continuous weather information directly from local National Weather Service offices. NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts alerts for the Emergency Alert system maintained by the Federal Communication Commission to provide emergency warnings for all types of hazards, including such things as earthquakes, volcanoes, severe weather and nuclear war. The NOAA Weather Radio system has more than 450 transmitters, covering the 50 states, adjacent coastal waters, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the U.S. Pacific Territories. NOAA Weather Radio generally requires a special radio receiver or scanner capable of picking up its emergency warning signal.
Tone activated alert receivers are now commonly used to monitor NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts, to provide warning of severe weather and to provide emergency and civil defense alerts. A tone alert receiver works by constantly monitoring the local NOAA Weather Radio broadcasts for a specific 1050 Hz alert tone. Upon receipt of the alert tone, the tone alert receiver activates an audio and/or visual alarm, followed by activation of a radio tuned to the NOAA Weather Radio broadcast. However, tone alert receivers are only effective if they are plugged in and set-up correctly to monitor the appropriate frequency. Often, after several false alerts, an individual will become frustrated and unplug the radio, thereby losing its benefits. Additionally, battery powered tone alert receivers are susceptible to battery depletion and failure and may be rendered incapable of providing necessary warnings.
Newer NOAA Weather Radio receivers incorporate a feature known as Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) to improve the specificity of weather alerts and to decrease the frequency of false alerts. SAME receivers are programmed to recognize a specific digital code designating a specific locality for which alerts are desired. Once programmed, a SAME receiver will only switch into alarm mode upon receipt of an emergency broadcast signal including a SAME digital location code matching the preprogrammed digital code.
In the modern era of expanding weather coverage by specialized carriers of information such as The Weather Channel.RTM., additional information is now available beyond that typically included in the NOAA radio broadcasts. For example, many local cable companies provide a channel displaying continuous weather radar for their locality. Therefore, once alerted to a weather emergency, individuals may now observe approaching severe weather systems on a more local basis and adjust their preparations accordingly. Accordingly, there is a need for a weather alert system which also provides for access to such sources of visual emergency information.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a weather alert system which activates a nearby visual information source and selects a useful informational channel in response to a broadcast signal indicative of a hazardous condition.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a weather alert system which can remotely activate visual information sources of a variety of different models manufactured by a number of manufactures.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a weather alert system which may be mounted in a home or office in a manner similar to that of a conventional smoke detector thereby decreasing the likelihood of deactivation by the user.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a weather alert system which may be hardwired into a home or office, thereby reducing the chance of failure due to battery failure.
It is yet another object of the present invention to provide a weather alert system having a battery backup power system, thereby reducing the chance of failure due to power outage.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a weather alert system which will provide audio and visual alarms in response to a broadcast signal indicative of a hazardous condition.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a weather warning system having an emergency lighting fixture for providing light upon failure of an external power source.